Purse hooks - keep your purse clean and off the floor

"How did I ever live without a purse hook?"

The purse hook

The purse hook is the gadget you never knew you needed. Costing from $5 to $30 on Amazon, it is a very simple gadget that lets you hang your purse off the edge of a table or desk. It's  keeps your purse safe, clean and in easy reach.

the Zoohook

Purse hooks have been around since the 1920's but they are only now becoming common. Some are just a simple L-shaped hook, while others are spring loaded or fold up into a neat little circle. A few even double as bracelets.  Supposedly, the Queen of England has a purse hook with a suction cup design. The rumor is that she discreetly spits into the cup, attaches the cup to the underside of a table, and hangs that mysterious purse of hers there.

Purse hooks range from the simple to the extravagantly decorated and some even boast hidden mirrors.

the Clipa bracelet-style hook

Pros

• Your purse stays clean because it's off the floor. Imagine putting your purse down on a restroom floor and then putting on your kitchen table. Ugh!
• Your purse is safer because you can see it; it's not under your chair where it can be stolen.

the Fumi bracelet-style hook

Cons

• Some purse hooks are much heavier than they should be--probably all the bling
• Some are kinda pricey

Helpful hints

• Check how much a purse hook weighs before buying
• If you buy a purse hook with fancy fake stones, be aware that they tend to fall off. Cheap metal also tends to tarnish.

Garage Gadget - Park like a Terminator with a Laser

Laser Parking Helper

Tired of accidentally parking in your living room? Sick of breaking your garage door when you send it smashing into the backend of your car, which you've left hanging out of the garage? If so, the MAXSA Park Right (about $17 on Amazon) is for you. Just mount it on the ceiling or back wall and when your car gets close, a laser beam starts up. Pull your car up until the laser beam hits the part of your dashboard you have designated corresponds to an acceptable parking job and you're set.

Who's this gadget good for

MAXSA Park Right

This is for anyone who's been annoyed by pulling the car in too far or not far enough. This is a cute, fun and cheap gadget that elegantly solves a problem.

Pros

• If you install it properly (up high at the front of he garage), it works perfectly every time.

Cons

• You need AC power so you can plug it in.

Helpful hints

• Park your car perfectly before you install the device. Install it so that the laser points to the center of the dashboard.

Links

Click here to read the review on The Examiner.

No more scooping -- the CatGenie is a toilet for cats

A Toilet for Cats

What is is

The CatGenie ($270 on Amazon) is an ingenious toilet for cats. Your cat does his business and after ten minutes the bowl slowly spins, and the rake picks up any solid wastes, plunking them into a little bin. Then water fills the bowl and the impeller in the bin breaks up the waste so it can go through a tube into your toilet where you flush it away.

Installation

photo from Amazon

Installation is fairly easy. You need to attach a tube to the toilet and you'll need to plug the CatGenie in for power. You also need to attach the included water line to your toilet's incoming water. No special tools are required, just a wrench and patience. The only difficulty is in manuevering the unwield thing into place.

photo credit: Chris Hugh

Analysis

The CatGenie relieves you of having to clean the litterbox. It really is a toilet for cats.

It sounds like heaven, but there are a couple problems.

First the reusable plastic litter is not to every cat's liking. My Mr. Kitten goes piddle in the CatGenie, but goes poopy on the tile floor in front of it. Thanks, Kitten.

Another problem is that it's not entirely reliable. Sometimes the tube gets clogged and the dirty water won't drain. It's easy to fix, but until you do, you've got poop soup and the cat has nowhere to do his business. Nowhere nice, anyway. If he holds in his pee, he can get a bladder infection and bladder infections in male cats are a life-threatening emergency. If he doesn't hold in his pee, he makes a mess. In either case, you really need a backup potty.

Third problem, as mentioned, the tube gets clogged. To fix it, you just shove the end of the hose (the part that was hanging into the toilet) against your faucet, run the water and blow out the clog. It's no big deal, but isn't super pleasant or sanitary.

Last minor problem, when the CatGenie cleans itself it will drain foamy poopy water into your toilet, leaving nasty looking stains. You'll need to clean your toilet more often to keep it looking okay.

Overall

Despite a few negatives, if you've got the space and the money, this is a great, great gadget. The best way to do this is to have two of them.

Helpful hints

• Read the directions. Seriously. I had the hose installed not-quite-right for over a year. It had too tight a kink in it, and it was clogging up.
• Write down or take a picture of the serial number before you set the machine up.
• You really need a backup litterbox. I got two CatGenie. Expensive, but very worth it to not have to scoop.

Links

Click here to read my review on examiner.com
Click here to read a review of the ScoopFree automatic litter box, another super pooper scooper

Motion-activated cat deterrent: Scat, cat! Get off the counter

Chase those cats away--with technology

Tired of cats jumping on tables and knocking over your Faberge eggs/Waterford crystal/meth-making equipment? Well, if you bring to bear the latest in human technology there's a small possibility you might teach the cat to stop it.

photo credit: Amazon

It's the Contech StayAway Pet Deterrent. (About $45 on Amazon) It's basically a motion-activated spray canister. If a cat (or you) come in range, it'll spray, or squeak or spray and squeak. The spraying (it just sprays air) really startles the cats, since it sounds like an angry cat hissing. They'll learn to avoid the area, at least as long as the device is there.

Who should get it

Everyone with a cat. You'll want to teach your cats to stay off the stove. If you're all fancy and germ phobic, I guess you might want to keep them off the kitchen counters and dining table, too.

Pros

• It really chases the cats away. Pretty fun to watch.

Cons

• Pretty expensive. You might try the Ssscat (about $25 on Amazon). Both are rated 4/5 stars.
• It would be nice if the device instilled healthy guilt and the fear of a righteous power, but it doesn't. The cats tend to learn that it is the device, not their own evil doing, that is the enemy. If you take it StayAway, well, away, the stinkers go back to their old subversive habits.
• You will get sprayed way more often than your cat will. It's harmless, but it gets old pretty quick. Perhaps it amuses the cats to see you sprayed with your own device.

Helpful hints

• Try to hide or camoflage the thing. Maybe you're cat will learn the general rule, "don't go there." Rather than the more specific rule, "don't go there until the human removes that thing or the battery runs out." Good luck outsmarting your cats.
• Get breakables and spillables out of the area. This is gonna scare the pants off your cat and he's gonna run like mad. Because cats are drama queens.